The document summarizes the history of the Hospital of St John & St Elizabeth from its founding in 1856 to the present day. It was originally founded in Great Ormond Street by Cardinal Wiseman and the Sisters of Mercy to provide care for incurable and long-term patients. Over its long history, the hospital has expanded its facilities and services, moved locations, and continued to provide both private care and charitable hospice services, with all profits funding its on-site hospice. Today it remains an independent hospital focused on excellence of care.

1. Welcome to the
Hospital of St John & St Elizabeth

2. Every visit to our Hospital helps to support on-site Hospice, St John’s,
which cares for over 2,000 patients and their families every year for free.

3. The Hospital of St John & St Elizabeth was founded in 1856.
Our focus has always been on one thing – excellence of care.

4. History of Our Hospital
Dating back to its foundation through the
Sisters of the Crimea, The Hospital of St
John & St Elizabeth is one of the UK’s
foremost independent private hospitals.
Originally sited where Great Ormond Street
Hospital for Children now stands, we have a
proud and distinguished history, serving
through the two great wars and continually
providing excellent care for the local
community.

5. The Hospital was founded in 1856 by Cardinal Wiseman, under the care of the
Sisters of Mercy, an order of nuns, who worked with Florence Nightingale in the
Crimean war. The Hospital pioneered the use of advanced nursing techniques
to help the sick, the dying and the needy.
Sister Catherine McAuley
Florence Nightingale

6. The Sisters brought to the Hospital not only the compassion, which
was key to their religious background, but also the professionalism,
which they had learned from Florence Nightingale.
Mother Gonzaga Barrie
Sister M Anastasia Kelly

7. The Sisters of Mercy continued to hold the nursing responsibility for the next 135 years.
From them we gain our tradition of nursing with expertise and cheerful compassion –
holistic care within the Catholic ethos.

8. Cardinal Wiseman’s vision was to
provide a Hospital that chiefly cared for
two classes of patients –
• Those suffering from incurable
disease, especially when near
death
• Those with maladies that, though
not necessarily incurable, required
long-term treatment
He reported at the time that hospitals
catering for such patients were not
readily available.
Cardinal Wiseman

9. Cardinal Wiseman’s vision
began with the purchase of two
houses, no's 46 & 47, in Great
Ormond Street at the end of the
Crimean War. Some of the
Sisters of Mercy from
Bermondsey who had been
nursing our soldiers, were
recruited to the new Hospital.
Convent of Mercy, Bermondsey, 1839

10. In 1864, Sir George Bowyer, a loyal
supporter of the Hospital, proposed
that he build a church and a convent
for the Sisters on the grounds of the
Hospital.
The proposal was accepted and the
church was built.
Sir George Bowyer

11. The Church of St John of Jerusalem,
Great Ormond Street, built in 1864
The Hospital, hitherto the
Hospital of St Elizabeth of Hungary,
became the
Hospital of St John of Jerusalem &
St Elizabeth.
Thereafter the Sisters wore the
Cross of Malta on their habits.

12. Lord and Lady Brampton were
major benefactors of the Hospital.
Their inheritance was left to the
Archbishop of Westminster for the
work of this Hospital and was
placed in the Brampton Trust.
Much of the property of the
Hospital belongs to the Brampton
Trust which continues its support
to this day.
Lord Brampton, 1884

13. There was an ever growing
demand for the Hospital’s
services. However, due its
proximity to Great Ormond
Street Hospital for Sick
Children, which adjoined the
Hospital of St John & St
Elizabeth, there was no room
for expansion.
The Church of St John of Jerusalem
Great Ormond Street, built in 1864

14. The decision was made to sell the
land to Great Ormond Street
Hospital and purchase a site in St
John’s Wood, which had the
advantage of having facilities
where the Sisters and patients
could be temporarily placed. The
work of the Hospital could then be
carried out without interruption
whilst the permanent Hospital was
built.
St John’s Wood site, 1897

15. It was also decided
that the Chapel
should be moved
brick by brick to the
new site in
St John’s Wood.
Thus the Chapel here
in the Hospital, is the
original Chapel built
by Sir George Bowyer
in Great Ormond
Street in 1864.

17. The Church in its new
location in St John’s Wood,
1900
Finished at a cost of
£45,000 - equivalent to
nearly £5million today

18. Extract from Our Hospitals and Charities Illustrated,
June 1904
A Hostel of Peace
The Hospital of St. John and St. Elizabeth
‘A special feature [of the Hospital] is the open-air
ward for tuberculosis patients. Here, Summer and
Winter, the fresh air blows through the ever-open
windows, and the patients who can rise spend the
sunny hours of the day on the flat roof which looks
over miles of London to the south as far as
St.Paul’s Cathedral, and beyond it to the
glistening towers of the Crystal Palace, and to the
north over the green slopes of Primrose Hill and
Hampstead and Harrow…’

19. ‘…There are also several
delightful rooms for paying
patients of moderate income.
There is a resident medical
officer and several visiting
doctors, but inside the
building all the duties,
including those of porter,
messenger and lift
attendance, are fulfilled by
women…’
One of the rooms for
paying patients, 1904

20. ‘…The sisters are trained hospital nurses; ten of the twenty-three employed have
received their certificates at large general hospitals, and those under the sisters
learn from them and attend medical and surgical lectures given by the doctors.
Sometimes when pressure is great, lay helpers are taken, but as a rule there is little
change in the staff...’
The Children’s Ward, 1904

21. ‘…The Hospital was
moved to its present
perfect quarters in
1898. The word
‘perfect’ is no
exaggeration, for its
beautiful wards,
sanitary arrangements,
dispensary (with three
qualified dispensing
sisters), and operating
theatre, are all perfect
of their kind.’
Operating Theatre 1904 – described as ‘the envy of
every doctor who visits it’

22. The Convent, Hospital and Church as seen from Circus Road, circa 1914

23. The Hospital as seen from Grove End Road circa 1914. The garden area is the site of the
current patient car park. Loudoun Hall, the building on the right hand side of the
photograph was demolished in 1990 to make way for the current Main Hospital Building.

24. Soldiers on the ward & outside the Hospital, 1915
Photographs courtesy of H. J. Wyatt

25. Between 1914-18 the Hospital treated 2,499 military patients

26. After the First World
War, the reputation of
the Hospital continued
to grow.
In 1922 the General
Nursing Council for
England and Wales
recognised the
Hospital as a training
school, with one of the
Sisters being chosen
to set up a
School of Radiology.

27. The Tetley Theatre, opened in 1925

28. No. 34 Circus Road,
purchased in 1927, to
expand the Hospital as
demand increased for
its services.

29. Pharmacy opened
in 1927

30. A radiotherapy device used for Radium
Treatment, installed in 1929.
X-ray Room One circa 1929
The room is still in use today
(but with new technology!)

31. By 1939, the Hospital’s capacity
had grown to 103 beds.

32. Newspaper article from May 1948:
‘The Hospital of St. John and St. Elizabeth
celebrates its 50th year on its present site
in St. John's Wood, London, on May 28. On
that day Cardinal Griffin will open a
maternity department in the Hospital with
accommodation for ten patients in addition
to doctors, reception and labour rooms.
The section will be in charge of the well-
known Catholic obstetrician Mr. J. V.
O'Sullivan. Earlier in the day the Cardinal
will preside at a Solemn High Mass of
thanksgiving, at which Canon Wood, rector
of the parish, will officiate…’

33. ‘…St. John's and St. Elizabeth's is famous
throughout the world. By entering the field
of maternity medicine it will be adding
another important chapter to its long and
distinguished work for the community. It will
remain outside the National Health scheme
and thus its Catholic character will be
unimpaired. It therefore will continue its
voluntary work and will depend on
subscriptions and donations.’

34. In 1948, on the advice of Cardinal Griffin, the Hospital remained outside the
National Health Service and was termed a “disclaimed hospital”.
Also in this year, telephones were installed for patients in all private rooms.

35. The Duke of Norfolk visited the Hospital in March
1965 as part of the Chapel’s 100 year anniversary
dedication and opened a new commemorative
garden in the Hospital’s grounds.

36. Newspaper article from October
1980:
‘The Hospital of St John and St
Elizabeth in St John's Wood, London
has raised £800,000 towards its
ambitious £3.5 million redevelopment
appeal. The proposed modernisation
of the 80 year old building is to
include a new twin operating theatre,
a continuing care unit and greater
comfort and privacy for the present
124 resident patients…’

37. ‘…There are currently 40 paying
patients and 84 patients who pay
part or none of the costs. It hopes to
provide more single rooms than
before, enabling patients to receive
more individual attention. This is in
line with plans to concentrate more
on very ill and terminal patients.’

38. The Queen Mother
visited the Hospital
in June 1984 to
unveil a plaque to
commemorate the
completion of the
Hospital's £3 million
redevelopment
scheme, including a
new consulting suite,
additional operating
theatre, private
patients' wing and
expanded renal
section.

39. Sister Mare Melitus,
Matron of the Hospital of
St John and St Elizabeth
in London, introduces
Queen Elizabeth the
Queen Mother to nursing
staff during her visit to
the Hospital in June
1984.

40. Newspaper article from October 1984:
‘Not all private hospitals are the same and the Hospital of St. John and St. Elizabeth
is different. Of course we have everything that today's private patients expect, single
rooms, bathrooms en suite, good food, comfortable surroundings, and attentive staff.
And everything that consultants require, advanced medical facilities including twin
operating theatres, pathology, radiology and physiotherapy, with experienced staff to
match…’

41. ‘…What really makes us different is our charity Hospice Unit, where we look after
people regardless of their ability to pay or their faith.
This Hospice is funded largely by the revenue from our Private Patients Unit, despite
the charges being well below the limits set by the medical insurance companies.
Which means that when you're treated at the Hospital of St. John and St. Elizabeth,
you're not only helping yourself, you're helping others.
And that's very different.’

42. Princess Diana was
invited for a tour of
the Hospital and its
refurbished Hospice
Unit in 1986.

43. Princess Diana
signs the Hospice
visitors book during
her tour in 1986.

44. Newspaper article from November
1988:
‘The Sisters of Mercy are to
withdraw from the Hospital of St
John and St Elizabeth after an
association of 133 years.
At their recent General Chapter, the
order reaffirmed the need to return
to its “commitment to be with the
poor and powerless. Only part of
the Hospital activities directly serve
the poor, and so the Congregation
must now withdraw".
The Hospital's trustees and board
of management express in the
statement their "deep regrets" at
the sisters' departure.’

45. In 1991, The Queen Mother visited the Hospital to unveil a
plaque commemorating the rebuilding of the Grove End Road
side of the Hospital.

46. Grove End Road view
of the Hospital, 1991

47. Newspaper article from December 1992:
‘The success of a £3.5 million fundraising
appeal in 1983/84 resulted in a
metamorphosis: a large part of the building
was completely restructured and a new wing
was built.
There are now 72 private rooms, cosy not
clinical; a 19-bed acute ward; a large new
outpatients department, various specialist
units; a new restaurant/canteen for staff and
visitors…’

48. ‘…On the first floor, there is a NHS-funded
ward, Our Lady of Mercy, which comes under
the Parkside Health Authority. There are 15
beds, most of them occupied by elderly
sufferers of Alzheimers disease; most are
immobile and incapable of communication,
and heartbreakingly vulnerable, but in a classic
Nightingale-style ward (all beds in view of the
staff) these helpless patients some of whom
have been there for over a decade are nursed
with a skill and compassion that is both a
credit to the Hospital and to the health
authority…’

49. ‘…Although St John and St Elizabeth's is
self-financing, it costs £1 million annually to
run its new Hospice which cares for the
terminally ill suffering from cancer, Aids, and
Motor Neurone Disease.
So there we have it: a symmetry of private
medical care financing the highest standard
of charitable care, plus the provision of an
NHS ward.
Remembering the written ethic of John and
Lizzies: ‘The Mission of the Hospital of St
John and St Elizabeth is to serve the sick
and dying and to seek to care for the
physical, spiritual and emotional needs of
the total person, whatever their race, colour
or creed.’

50. In 2007, the old
Covent, now known
as Brampton House,
was developed to
provide facilities for
30 Outpatient
consulting rooms, an
endoscopy suite, an
NHS GP practice, a
second main
entrance, and a new
Hospice Day Centre
with offices and
therapy rooms.

51. New waiting area and reception of
Brampton House, built 2007.

52. In 2011, the old
Outpatients department
was transformed into an
urgent care centre to help
continue our tradition of
serving the community.
This private, walk-in,
urgent care centre is a
much-needed facility and
has already treated over
12,000 people offering
no-wait access to
experienced A&E doctors.

53. In 2011, the Hospital
refurbished its
Imaging Department,
and became the first
private hospital in the
UK to install a
3T MRI scanner. The
Hospital also later
replaced its CT
scanner by installing
a state of the art 256-
slice scanner,
continuing our ethos
of providing ultimate
standards of care and
cutting edge
technology to the
community.

54. The aim of the Hospital is the same now as it was when we were
founded over 150 years ago –
To provide the highest quality health care for all those who seek it.

55. Thank you for reading about our truly unique Hospital.
All profits fund our on-site Hospice, St John’s, which cares
for over 2,000 patients and their families every year for free.

56. St John’s Hospice is the
only independent hospice in
Central London. It costs
£5million a year to keep its
vital services running.
Our Hospice has a 19 bed
Inpatient Unit, which is free
for all who need its care.
Our Hospice, St John’s

57. Our Hospice@Home
team is responsible
for caring for
hundreds of terminally
ill patients every year
in the comfort of their
own homes.

58. Hospice@Home
team winning at
the Independent
Healthcare
Awards 2012.

59. In October 2012, the
Hospice launched
London’s only
palliative care
ambulance to ensure
patients who need to
come into the
Hospice aren’t kept
waiting.

60. The Hospice also runs a Child Bereavement service, Day
Services, Occupational Therapy, Social Work,
Complementary Therapies, Lymphoedema Service,
Physiotherapy & Community Support.

61. For more information visit our websites:
www.hje.org.uk www.stjohnshopsice.org.uk